Stop Press

You will need to see a GP in an appointment to obtain a first fit note or for a new problem. Unless the request is a follow on from a note given by hospital.

If your request is for a follow on fit note you can request this via a receptionist or in writing.

The request will be sent to the doctor and will be available on or after the date that the previous note expires – notes cannot be given early

It is the responsibility of the patient to request in adequate time and collect from ECP after due date.

New Telephone Consultation option

From the 6th March we will allocate a number of appointments each day which you can request a telephone consultation with a doctor rather than a face to face appointment.

Why are we doing this?

There are significant pressures on the NHS and we have to make the best use of our time in order to continue to meet patient demand. We have listened to what our patients are telling us about improving access to a doctor. A telephone consultation offers an alternative to having to come in to the Practice, so for example if you need to talk to a doctor about a concern or discuss something that doesn’t require a physical examination this could be a better option for you.

It also allows a doctor to deal with more patients over the course of a day. We estimate a doctor can help an extra one patient for every half hour of telephone consultations compared to face to face consultations. It may not sound much but in the course of a week we can offer an additional 25 patient consultations from simply changing over a half hour of normal consultations to telephone consultations. That is the equivalent of an extra doctor working for half a day.

How can you help?

By ensuring we have an up to date contact number for you and by making sure you are available to take the call. We will give you an idea of when to expect the call and will aim to call you within a half hour of that time.

General News

Monthly Health Awareness Campaign

Each month we will be focusing on a health related topic.

For February the surgery is focusing on Strokes.

A Stroke is a serious life-threatening medical condition that occurs when the blood supply to a part of the brain is cut off. Strokes are a medical emergency and urgent treatment is essential.

Symptoms:

Face - the face may have dropped on one side, the person may not be able to smile, or their mouth or eye may have dropped.

Arms - the person with suspected stroke may not be able to lift both arms and keep them there because of weakness or numbness in one arm.

Speech - Their speech may be slurred ir garbled, or the person may not be able to talk at all despite appearing to be awake.

Time - it's time to dial 999 immediately if you see any of these signs or symptoms.

We are sorry to report that the supplier of the MyGP app are still working on a fix for the problem preventing patients booking appointments through the app. We have been advised by them that a fix is being actively worked on and will be available shortly.

Patients are still able to book appointments online via Patient Access. Further details can be found on the Book an Appointment tab above.

Text messaging reminder service

We have recently introduced a new text messaging reminder service provided by iPLATO which is aimed at providing helpful reminders to patients of upcoming appointments. The service is currently set up to issue up to two reminders, three days before and the day before a booked appointment. We have introduced this as a convenient additional service to patients and in an attempt to reduce the number of missed appointments which was having an impact on the overall number of appointments available to patients.

If you receive a reminder and are unable to attend your appointment it is important that you text CANCEL (in capital letters) as a reply to enable the system to cancel your appointment.

Please do not reply to the texts with anything other than CANCEL as this is an automated service and we are unable to deal with messages sent via text.

PLEASE REMEMBER TO KEEP YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION UP TO-DATE WITH US.

Accessible information

We want to get better at communicating with our patients.

We want to make sure you can read and understand the information we send you.

If you find it hard to read our letters or if you need someone to support you at appointments, please let us know.

Please tell the receptionist if you need information in a different format or communication support.

Please be a patient patient

Four new reception staff have joined the Practice in the last four months. We would appreciate your patience whilst we train them up. There is a lot to learn!

Our current news stories include

Friends and Family Test

Registration with the Care Quality Commission

Need a Dentist

Emergency Dental Service

New Appointment System

Patient Participation Group

Surgery POD

Other News and Information:

All the staff at the Surgery would like to thank one of our patients for

the amazing cake made for Dr Siva and all the staff at the Surgery. We love it!

Self Booking in Screen

Please note we have installed a self booking in screen on the wall to the left of reception as you come in the main entrance. If you would like to be shown how to use this please ask at reception.

Patient Participation Group

Did you know we have a Patient Participation Group?

The purpose of the Patient Participation Group is to help us access and use your ideas for new projects, and gaining your views as to how the practice can improve and develop.

Health Help Now
Health Help Now has been used more than 85,000 times since its launch, helping people to find the right treatment in the right place.It is an app and website (www.healthhelpnow-nhs.net) which matches services to symptoms and shows which services are open and where they are available.It can help you find out if they need to see a doctor, pharmacist or use a minor injuries service

Online Services
There is information on our online services tab about Patient Access accounts. You can apply for an access account by registering now. This may allow you access to appointments online, repeat medications, summary medical record and if required your detailed coded records.

Your Named Doctor
As a patient at East Cliff Practice you are registered with a named doctor who is responsible and accountable for your care. You do not have to see your named doctor, you can see a doctor of your choice within your GP Team. This will not affect your care or your visits to the surgery. We do urge you to see the same doctor with a continuing problems where possible as this assists in your continuity of care. All consultations are recorded on our clinical system and available to the next doctor who sees you.

Friends and Family Test
We always welcome your feedback and comments on the care we give. Please see the panel on the bottom right to see what other people have said. We also have a link for you to add your comments. Paper forms are also available in reception for those who wish to use them.

Useful Contacts

Call Recording
Please note all calls to and from the surgery are now recorded for the protection of you, the surgery and for internal training purposes.

Are you a Carer?
A Carer is someone who, without payment provides help and support to a relative, friend or neighbour, who could not manage without their help due to a physical or mental illness, addiction or disability. Becoming a carer can happen to anyone at any time and affects people from all cultures and of all ages. Carers Support are at the surgery every Friday morning between 09:00 and 10:30, they can offer help advice and support for you.

On-line Access
You can now order your repeat prescription online using Patient Access. You can use our online appointments button to book appointments with your named GP up to 4 weeks in advance.

Whether you are at home or work you can quickly log on to view, book and cancel appointments and order repeat prescriptions via the internet. Available 24 hours a day, it's especially useful when the practice is closed or telephone lines are busy.